St. Petersburg Teen Dies in Early Morning Crash

The crash, which was alcohol-related, closed portions of Curlew Road and County Road 611 for about five and a half hours, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

PINELLAS COUNTY – A St. Petersburg teen died and six others were seriously injured early this morning (March 11) in a traffic crash, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

Jocelyn Kaila Schirmer, 18, of St. Petersburg, died at the scene. She was not wearing a seat belt, troopers said.

Kianna Diaz, 15, of Riverview, was taken to Tampa General Hospital with critical injuries. Jayla Simpson, 15, of Pinellas Park, a passenger, was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital with critical injuries.

Donavan L. Patterson, 18, of Pinellas Park, the driver, was taken to Tampa General with serious injuries. He had been drinking, troopers said. Caleb Moore Lindsay, 20, of Naples, another passenger, was taken to Bayfront Health with serious injuries. Paul Schirmer, 17, of St. Petersburg, who was also in the car, was taken to St. Joseph’s with serious injuries.

Dalton A. Cox, 22, of Clearwater, the driver of the other vehicle, was taken to St. Joseph’s with serious injuries. He had also been drinking, troopers said. Megan Bortolis, 21, of Palm Harbor, and Victoria Rowe, 23, of Dunedin, were taken to Mease Countryside with minor injuries. Troopers said Rowe was not wearing a seat belt.

The crash happened about 12:58 a.m. at the intersection of Curlew Road and Country Road 611. Patterson was driving a 2008 Dodge Caliber was traveling south on CR-611. Troopers said he failed to stop for a red light at the intersection and collided with a 2003 Ford F250 driven by Cox. The Ford overturned as a result of the crash. Troopers said the crash closed portions of the roadway until about 6:35 a.m.